3rd ODI: India win toss, elect to bowl vs SA
What's the story
India and South Africa are up against each other in the third and final ODI of their series at the ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. The match is set to begin at 1:30pm IST. With both teams having won one match each, the series is currently tied at 1-1. Meanwhile, Indian skipper KL Rahul has won the toss and elected to field first.
Series recap
Batters have been on a roll
South Africa have been in great form, winning the second ODI by four wickets in Raipur. They chased down a daunting target of 359 runs, highlighting their batting strength. In the first ODI too, they nearly chased down a target of 350 but lost by 17 runs. Team India has lost the toss on both occasions, and their bowlers have struggled with dew factor. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli scored tons in each of the first two games.
Game strategy
Dew factor and pitch conditions
Dew has been a major factor in this series, especially affecting the team bowling second. The ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam has hosted five matches recently, with the chasing team winning all five times. Meanwhile, one can watch the match live on the Star Sports Network and stream it on the JioHotstar app/website.
Information
Finally a toss won by India
Team India has finally won a toss after losing 20 on the bounce in the ODI format. The second-best streak in this regard is 11, held by the Netherlands. The last time India won the toss in an ODI was in the 2023 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand.
Match statistics
Here is the head-to-head record
As per ESPNcricinfo, the two teams have clashed 96 times in ODIs. India have collected 41 wins to South Africa's 52 (NR: 3). O n Indian soil, the two teams have met 34 times. India own 19 wins (L15). Since 2006, India and South Africa have played 10 bilateral ODI series against each other with an even scoreline of 5-5.
Changes
Varma comes in for Sundar
India have made a solitary change as Tilak Varma has replaced Washington Sundar in the XI. Hence, Rishabh Pant continues to warm the benches. SA, meanwhile, have made two forced changes as Tony de Zorzi and Nandre Burger were hampered by hamstring injuries in the last game. Ryan Rickelton and Ottneil Baartman have replaced the duo in the XI.
Team line-ups
Here are the playing XIs
South Africa (Playing XI): Ryan Rickelton, Quinton de Kock (wk), Temba Bavuma(c), Matthew Breetzke, Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman. India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (wk & c), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna.